Houseboat rental and traveling as far as Escalante Canyou

Status
Not open for further replies.
B

Ben johnson

Active Member
We are considering renting a houseboat at Bullfrog for a month or a few weeks, pulling a Tracker behind it and heading for Escalante Canyon. I would like some advice from viewers that have this experience. Fueling at Dangling Rope, canyons to fish on the way, etc. Any advice would be appreciate. Thanks Ben Johnson
 
If refueling at DR, why not start at Wahweap.

EC is bouy 69 from dam, you can count on about 7-10 mph on a houseboat depending on wind waves and tow drag. Stopping at DR will take about 1.5 hours to get through wakeless, tie up and refuel, empty your wallet, and get ice creams. My guess is about 8-10 hours to the sandy beach at the mouth of EC. Awesome camping in Escalante - Amazing! Good spots across the bay on EC side of registration rock too. Take the time to hike hole in the rock near EC if able. Trail to top of EC is just outside of EC mouth down river starboard.

Watch out for UFO's near Cow.

Lots of history in this area - read up before the trip.

Look for ruess
 
Excellent fishing in Escalante (50 mile Canyon) and rockslides in the main channel. Also canyons in the channel between Escalante and Dangling Rope include Llwellyn and Cottonwood. You will pass Hole-in-the-Rock. Great history there. You should read up on how the Pioneers took covered wagons down that slot canyon in the 1800's. (Gerald Lund -The Undaunted). Also there is another canyon called the San Juan that has lots of camping and great fishing!
 
wayne gustaveson said:
Excellent fishing in Escalante (50 mile Canyon) and rockslides in the main channel. Also canyons in the channel between Escalante and Dangling Rope include Llwellyn and Cottonwood. You will pass Hole-in-the-Rock. Great history there. You should read up on how the Pioneers took covered wagons down that slot canyon in the 1800's. (Gerald Lund -The Undaunted). Also there is another canyon called the San Juan that has lots of camping and great fishing!
Click to expand...
Now Wayne - You're supposed to warn newbies about the Croc's and Zombies on the San Juan! It's really only recommended for the daring and experienced Wordling 😎🤣.
 
A month is a long time, with no real option to restock food and beverage supplies. Even using the tracker to make a marina run you won't have much option to restock. The only real way to restock would be to run down to Page, and take the 1 taxi (and I do mean one as is one car, not one service vendor) into town to get groceries- It would not be a quick or efficient trip. Takes forever to get the taxi to the marina, into town and to get the taxi back. That in itself is a couple of hours
 
bubba said:
If refueling at DR, why not start at Wahweap.

EC is bouy 69 from dam, you can count on about 7-10 mph on a houseboat depending on wind waves and tow drag. Stopping at DR will take about 1.5 hours to get through wakeless, tie up and refuel, empty your wallet, and get ice creams. My guess is about 8-10 hours to the sandy beach at the mouth of EC. Awesome camping in Escalante - Amazing! Good spots across the bay on EC side of registration rock too. Take the time to hike hole in the rock near EC if able. Trail to top of EC is just outside of EC mouth down river starboard.

Watch out for UFO's near Cow.

Lots of history in this area - read up before the trip.

Look for ruess
Click to expand...
Wether we leave from Bullfrog or wahweap we will be pulling a 5th wheel and an 18 ft tracker behind it. Bullfrog is closer to our Colorado home. We know Bullfrog area really well and there are places there that we can park our trailer free while renting a house boat. We plan on pulling the tracker with the houseboat for fishing. There are two of us. My concern is being able to get fuel and dump tanks if necessary for a month long trip. Can we put extra water cans and fuel cans aboard the rental houseboat
 
WE always take at least 60 gallons of fuel with us secured on the top deck. We take drinking water cause if you saw the crap floating around in the water tanks you probably wouldn'y drink it either. I just looked into adding days to our 7 day trip and they said no but there has to be a way around that. The holding tanks will be what has to be addressed. The floating restrooms have hoses for pumping waste but it can be tedious. Really good coolers will be appreciated and if you make an ice bank with a couple of them and keep them closed and covered you will have ice for a long time. Lots of tricks that most of us learned the hard way but you have the advantage of access to this site.
 
The answer is yes to extra water. Aramark used to have restrictions on the extra fuel being stored on the deck of the houseboat. I am not sure if that is still the case. However the work around is your Tracker. Tow the Tracker with the extra fuel when camp is set up move the fuel to the beach. Make sure to open the vents as the sun will cause the containers to swell. I would suggest leaving from Wahweap. That was your vehicle is there. You can Tracker in. Use the guest dock. Drive into town for restocking at Walmart or the other groceries, top off your extra fuel at the gas station then go back to your little piece of heaven we all call Lake Powell. As was previously mentioned, plan to stay in more places and see more of the lake. It will be well worth it.
 
birdsnest said:
WE always take at least 60 gallons of fuel with us secured on the top deck. We take drinking water cause if you saw the crap floating around in the water tanks you probably wouldn'y drink it either. I just looked into adding days to our 7 day trip and they said no but there has to be a way around that. The holding tanks will be what has to be addressed. The floating restrooms have hoses for pumping waste but it can be tedious. Really good coolers will be appreciated and if you make an ice bank with a couple of them and keep them closed and covered you will have ice for a long time. Lots of tricks that most of us learned the hard way but you have the advantage of access to this site.
Click to expand...
Birdnest. Thanks. We have been from one end of the lake several times in past years. We have owned 24 boats of various sizes, but have never rented a houseboat for a month. Have fished Powell from the very first day the lake opened with my dad after getting out of the navy. My skepticism is renting a houseboat for two and having enough fuel, water and holding tank space for a month. As I understand house boats are self contained with propane refrigerators, stoves, sinks, toilets, etc. EC is our main target. But plan on spending time going and coming back from the marina. Food supply is also a top concern and could use the tracker to go into page, DR for some supplies. Yes. Taking bottled water for drinking is a necessity I would be concerned about. Anything you can add to this reply would be appreciated. Also we are thinking about the rental about mid April. Befor a price increase. Your thoughts please.
 
PowellBride said:
A month is a long time, with no real option to restock food and beverage supplies. Even using the tracker to make a marina run you won't have much option to restock. The only real way to restock would be to run down to Page, and take the 1 taxi (and I do mean one as is one car, not one service vendor) into town to get groceries- It would not be a quick or efficient trip. Takes forever to get the taxi to the marina, into town and to get the taxi back. That in itself is a couple of hours
Click to expand...
Powellbride. Thanks for the reply. Yes my first thought was using the tracker boat to make a food run into page. What stores are available there besides Walmart for shopping for food.
 
Bill Sampson said:
If you are out over a week you will need to pump your tanks and refill your fresh water tank.
Click to expand...
Bill. What experience have you had pumping out the tanks on a house oat. Mu understanding is that these boat have like a 150 gallon ,black and grey tank on these boats. My 5th wheel on Ly has 40 gallon tanks and with just the two of last almost 3-4 weeks. Thanks
 
bubba said:
If refueling at DR, why not start at Wahweap.

EC is bouy 69 from dam, you can count on about 7-10 mph on a houseboat depending on wind waves and tow drag. Stopping at DR will take about 1.5 hours to get through wakeless, tie up and refuel, empty your wallet, and get ice creams. My guess is about 8-10 hours to the sandy beach at the mouth of EC. Awesome camping in Escalante - Amazing! Good spots across the bay on EC side of registration rock too. Take the time to hike hole in the rock near EC if able. Trail to top of EC is just outside of EC mouth down river starboard.

Watch out for UFO's near Cow.

Lots of history in this area - read up before the trip.

Look for ruess
Click to expand...
Bubba. Don’t have my Powell maps available right now as they are in storage with our boat right now. How far is EC from Wahweap. Inasmuch as we will be pulling a 5th wheel with a boat behind us are there places to park the trailer and truck when you rent a houseboat for a month?
 
Powelldreamer said:
The answer is yes to extra water. Aramark used to have restrictions on the extra fuel being stored on the deck of the houseboat. I am not sure if that is still the case. However the work around is your Tracker. Tow the Tracker with the extra fuel when camp is set up move the fuel to the beach. Make sure to open the vents as the sun will cause the containers to swell. I would suggest leaving from Wahweap. That was your vehicle is there. You can Tracker in. Use the guest dock. Drive into town for restocking at Walmart or the other groceries, top off your extra fuel at the gas station then go back to your little piece of heaven we all call Lake Powell. As was previously mentioned, plan to stay in more places and see more of the lake. It will be well worth it.
Click to expand...
 
Powelldreamer said:
The answer is yes to extra water. Aramark used to have restrictions on the extra fuel being stored on the deck of the houseboat. I am not sure if that is still the case. However the work around is your Tracker. Tow the Tracker with the extra fuel when camp is set up move the fuel to the beach. Make sure to open the vents as the sun will cause the containers to swell. I would suggest leaving from Wahweap. That was your vehicle is there. You can Tracker in. Use the guest dock. Drive into town for restocking at Walmart or the other groceries, top off your extra fuel at the gas station then go back to your little piece of heaven we all call Lake Powell. As was previously mentioned, plan to stay in more places and see more of the lake. It will be well worth it.
Click to expand...
Are there places near the marina at wahweap where we could park our truck and trailer free while renting a houseboat for a month. I would have no problem hauling extra fuel in my tracker if need be. I had planned on that as a matter of fact. How far is it from wahweap to EC. Don’t have my maps available as they are in storage. Thanks
 
Not sure why you would want to leave from Wahweap. You will not need to refuel the houseboat and will be towing the tracker. I would just haul gas cans in the tracker. When needed, make a run to halls or DR to buy gas and fill the cans. There is a pumpout at the mouth of Escalante. Pumping 150 gallons by hand....I would get the wife on a workout program asap😁
 
wayne gustaveson said:
Excellent fishing in Escalante (50 mile Canyon) and rockslides in the main channel. Also canyons in the channel between Escalante and Dangling Rope include Llwellyn and Cottonwood. You will pass Hole-in-the-Rock. Great history there. You should read up on how the Pioneers took covered wagons down that slot canyon in the 1800's. (Gerald Lund -The Undaunted). Also there is another canyon called the San Juan that has lots of camping and great fishing!
Click to expand...
Wayne’s thanks for the reply. My family history of Mormons are some of the bunch that crossed at hole in the rock. I have a few family history books on the subject. dont have access to my maps at this time. How far is it from bullfrog to DR, from Bullfrog to EC. From DR to EC. What are your thought on renting a houseboat at wahweap vs Bullfrog. My grandson is supervisor of boat inspection at Bullfrog marina. We have camped many years at Bullfrog and Stanton creek. Thanks for any advice you can give us. Will a marine radio get out to these places on a houseboat.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top